In 2025, fire departments serving Grosse Pointe Woods responded to 55 fire and hazmat incidents — from cooking fires to gas leaks to a single $25K building blaze. Here's the full picture.
Power line down lead by count. Building fires lead by dollars. Together the top five categories make up about 75% of all calls.
Jun peaks. Sep dips. Watch for the typical fall climb starting in October.
368 incidents 2021–2025. Peak year was 2021. $689K cumulative property loss.
| Year | Incidents | YoY | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 | 116 | — | |
| 2022 | 63 | -45.7% | |
| 2023 | 75 | +19.0% | |
| 2024 | 59 | -21.3% | |
| 2025 | 55 | -6.8% |
For the 3 building fires Grosse Pointe Woods departments responded to in 2025, here's how they were classified once investigators were finished.
NFIRS Area of Origin (AREA_ORIG) for the 46 building fires investigators classified across 2021–2025. The room or location where ignition occurred — kitchens, bedrooms, exterior, vehicle areas — tells you where to focus prevention.
| # | Area of origin | Count | Share | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Outside area, other | 7 | 15.2% | |
| 2 | Other | 5 | 10.9% | |
| 3 | Cooking area, kitchen | 5 | 10.9% | |
| 4 | Undetermined | 4 | 8.7% | |
| 5 | Engine area, running gear, wheel area | 3 | 6.5% | |
| 6 | Courtyard, patio, porch, terrace | 3 | 6.5% | |
| 7 | Bathroom, checkroom, lavatory, locker room | 2 | 4.3% | |
| 8 | Storage area, other | 2 | 4.3% | |
| 9 | Conduit, pipe, utility, or ventilation shaft | 2 | 4.3% | |
| 10 | Equipment or service area, other | 2 | 4.3% | |
| 11 | All other areas | 11 | 23.9% |
NFIRS Heat Source (HEAT_SOURC) — the physical thing that started it. Spark or ember from operating equipment, an open flame, smoking materials, or hot embers from a fireplace are the leading culprits nationwide. Here's the Grosse Pointe Woods mix.
| # | Heat source | Count | Share | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Undetermined | 14 | 30.4% | |
| 2 | Heat from powered equipment, other | 8 | 17.4% | |
| 3 | Heat source: other | 3 | 6.5% | |
| 4 | Spark, ember or flame from operating equipment | 3 | 6.5% | |
| 5 | Hot or smoldering object, other | 3 | 6.5% | |
| 6 | Hot ember or ash | 3 | 6.5% | |
| 7 | Heat from other open flame or smoking materials | 3 | 6.5% | |
| 8 | Multiple heat sources including multiple ignitions | 2 | 4.3% | |
| 9 | Arcing | 1 | 2.2% | |
| 10 | Heat, spark from friction | 1 | 2.2% | |
| 11 | All other sources | 5 | 10.9% |
Largest single-incident property losses reported by Grosse Pointe Woods departments in 2025. These 8 fires alone account for 100% of the city's annual total.
| # | Property loss | Type | Severity | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | $25,000 | Fire, other | Significant | Investigated |
| 2 | $15,000 | Passenger vehicle fire | Significant | Investigated |
| 3 | $10,000 | Arcing, shorted electrical equipment | Significant | Investigated |
| 4 | $3,000 | Building fires | Significant | Investigated |
| 5 | $1,005 | Dumpster or other outside trash receptacle fire | Significant | Investigated |
| 6 | $1,000 | Dumpster or other outside trash receptacle fire | Significant | Investigated |
| 7 | $1,000 | Dumpster or other outside trash receptacle fire | Significant | Investigated |
| 8 | $20 | Natural vegetation fire, other | Significant | Investigated |
Per-capita rates let us compare apples to apples. Grosse Pointe Woods sits below the national average for incidents per resident.
Top 23 wildfires (1992+) in the FPA-FOD ignitions database, scaled by acres. 1,012 acres burned in this 50-mile radius. Each dot is a fire — bigger dots burned more land.
| Year | Cause | Acres | Distance | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2019 | Debris and open burning | 300 | 33.9 mi | |
| 2019 | Equipment and vehicle use | 80 | 45.8 mi | |
| 2005 | Debris and open burning | 77 | 44.5 mi | |
| 2012 | Smoking | 64 | 49.7 mi | |
| 2003 | Debris and open burning | 53 | 36.0 mi | |
| 2020 | Debris and open burning | 50 | 41.5 mi | |
| 2019 | Missing data/not specified/undetermined | 49 | 16.8 mi | |
| 2010 | Arson/incendiarism | 42 | 31.2 mi | |
| 1994 | Recreation and ceremony | 38 | 42.1 mi | |
| 2003 | Equipment and vehicle use | 33 | 43.8 mi | |
| 1996 | Misuse of fire by a minor | 30 | 36.4 mi | |
| 2014 | Recreation and ceremony | 30 | 35.5 mi |
Top 8 ZIP codes by NFIRS incident count across 2021–2025. Each ZIP has its own fire profile — dive in for neighborhood-level context.
Six Michigan cities with population within ±25% of Grosse Pointe Woods. Useful comparison targets — same state, similar size, different fire profile.
1 departments report to NFIRS for incidents in Grosse Pointe Woods.
A 30-minute weekend can cut your home's exposure substantially. These four checklists are a good starting point.
Numbers reflect incidents reported by participating fire departments to the National Fire Incident Reporting System (NFIRS) Public Data Release for calendar year 2025. NFIRS is voluntary — about 23,000 of roughly 30,000 US fire departments report — so totals are a strong indicator, not a complete census. Per-capita comparisons use 2023 ACS population estimates. Wildland fire data complements NFIRS with NIFC and USFS perimeters. Active-fire counts come from a dated NIFC snapshot, not a live feed.